Key Terms
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The Destruction of Sennacherib
I
The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold;
And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.
II
Like the leaves of the forest when Summer is green,
That host with their banners at sunset were seen:
Like the leaves of the forest when Autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay withered and strown.
III
For the angel of Death spread his wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed;
And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved--and for ever grew still!
--George Gordon, Lord Byron (1815)
Like the books of Samuel, the books of Kings were originally one. The story line of Kings continues the history of Israel's leadership that began in the books of Samuel. But Kings differs from Samuel in at least one feature: It does not have a small number of focal figures but instead traces the line of kings from David all the way to the exile.
Kings is a continuation of the Deuteronomistic History, which (as its name implies) traces its pedigree back to Deuteronomy. It shares a basic theological perspective with the other books of the DH. Its foundation is the covenant that united Yahweh and Israel and defined Israel's relationship to Yahweh. A concern for the quality of Israel's religious life is central to the theology of the Deuteronomistic History. If the people were faithful and loyal to Yahweh, then they would be protected and blessed by Yahweh. Otherwise, the nation would suffer.
The quality of Israel's devotion to Yahweh was measured by the exclusiveness of its religious focus. If Yahweh alone was worshiped, the people were judged faithful. If Yahweh was worshiped only in Jerusalem and in the prescribed manner, the people were judged loyal.
Note especially the theological judgments applied to the kings. It is not the king's effectiveness in domestic or international politics that the DH evaluates; it is the king's effectiveness as a religious leader and model citizen. Watch how often the writer evaluates a king by whether he (rarely) "did right" or (most often) "did evil" in the eyes of Yahweh. Kings who rejected idolatry and promoted religious reform, such as Josiah, were approved. Kings who encouraged or even tolerated non-Yahwistic practices were denounced.
The DH's prejudice against the Northern Kingdom is especially obvious. No ruler from the north is given approval, regardless of his accomplishments. Nothing they do can be acceptable because Israel (as the Northern Kingdom was called) was established on religiously shaky ground. Jeroboam, its first king, broke with the divinely authorized Davidic dynasty and the Jerusalem temple, and created alternate worship centers that employed golden calves as religious symbols. Because none of the following kings eliminated these centers, each is categorically condemned. Ultimately, because of the golden calves at Dan and Bethel, the Northern Kingdom was destroyed.
 Figure 9.2 Books of Kings
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